Yeovil Freewheelers, who deliver vital medical supplies between NHS sites across the South of England, has been awarded a Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service. Drivers in South Somerset are being asked to report overgrown grass verges where a risk to motorists and cyclists exists. Ninety percent of public rights of way in Somerset have been cleared and made ready for use. The proportion of people claiming out of work benefits is growing fastest in rural areas...and more.
Yeovil Freewheelers, who deliver vital medical supplies between NHS sites across the South of England, has been awarded a Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service. The organization, based at Yeovil Hospital, is the oldest surviving blood-bike group in the country and has been recognised for its work during the Covid pandemic.
Drivers in South Somerset are being asked to report overgrown grass verges where a risk to motorists and cyclists exists. Somerset County Council says priority is being given to cutting back overgrown roadside verges to ensure maximum safety for road users.
Ninety percent of public rights of way in Somerset have been cleared and made ready for use. The County has 9,000 public rights of way, covering almost 4,000 miles.
The proportion of people claiming out of work benefits is growing fastest in rural areas, including here in South Somerset, according to new data. Somerset County Council says the number of people claiming benefits across the County has doubled in the past year.
Solar panels are to be installed on eight council-owned buildings in Yeovil. Planning applications have been submitted for carrying out the work as part of a clean energy drive by South Somerset District Council. The buildings are:
The Jon O'Donnell Pavillion at Yeovil Recreation Centre
A Yeovil man has been fined £1,200 for sending hostile text messages to his ex-wife. A report into the performance of Avon and Somerset Police has found it doesn't answer emergency calls quickly enough. Twenty-two swimmers at the Trident Swimming Club in Chard have won places in this year’s Somerset County Swimming Championships...and more
A man has appeared in court charged with murdering a one-month-old baby boy in Chard. Kingfisher Primary School in Yeovil has been highly praised by Ofsted. Somerset Council says it’s “extremely disappointed” after its bid to form a devolved Wessex group of local councils was rejected by the government...and more.
The Liberal Democrat Leader of Somerset Council, Councillor Bill Revans, says they had no choice but to ask the government to allow them to lift the 5 percent cap on raising Council Tax. Two teenagers have been released on bail following the stabbing in Yeovil. More than six thousand pounds has been awarded to local groups by Chard Carnival Committee...and more.
Somerset has been permitted to increase its Council Tax share by 7.5 percent. An Ilminster man, forced out of his house by last week's floods, says he doesn't know when he will be able to return home. Ilminster Literary Festival has launched its annual children’s writing competition, designed to encourage local children to write creative literature...and more.
Five men have appeared in court charged with the murder of a man in Yeovil. A 16-year-old is the second person to be arrested in connection with a stabbing in Yeovil. Yeovil’s new outdoor entertainment space in Lower Middle Street has been officially opened by the town’s MP... and more.
A teenager has been arrested following a stabbing in Yeovil. Water bills in Somerset are set to go up on average by £123 from April. Yeovil MP, Adam Dance will officially open Yeovil’s new outdoor performance space later today...and more
Lloyds bank is closing its branch in Chard. A Sherborne man has been jailed after defrauding a Yeovil woman of £40,000. A volunteer group in Chard is urging people to sign up to a flood victims register. A councillor in Shepton Mallet has become the first Reform UK member on Somerset Council... and more
New mums in Somerset could soon be offered a cervical screening test six weeks after giving birth. Police are asking for help in finding a Yeovil man wanted on recall to prison. The government has given half a million pounds towards planting more trees in Somerset, including 100 new trees in Yeovil...and more